American Idol Top 13

I was not super-impressed with the road to the Top 13. Out of the three episodes that dropped the Top 36 to the Top 13, only the first one was interesting to me. The second week was terrible. I was going to write about it, but it didn't seem worth my time. I took notes on the other episodes, but got bored going back through them. Life is short, why waste it on boring shows?

My boy, Anoop, has been letting me down a bit. I think he deserved the wild card, but he needs to get his act together. Jasmine was one of my favorites early on, but I think she needs a few years to grow into something. Maybe she should look into modeling instead. I won't really miss her or Jorge (whom I've never really liked, except when he tries to speak English when he's too excited--kinda endearing).

They probably should have kept Nick/Norman or at least Nathaniel to liven up these shows a bit! I don't understand the hype around Allison Iraheta. She's terrible at interviews, and I generally only like her singing when it's calm. She starts to shout-in every performance-and loses me. She makes me want to fast forward through her songs, and that's never a good sign.

I love that Paula complimented Lil's outfit on Tuesday's show, and Simon promptly expressed his hatred for it. Lil Rounds is just great. Her accent is adorable. I love the way she incorporates herself into her songs. She'll throw her name in, or tell people to vote for her. She's got a personality and she's a great performer. Plus, she chose my favorite Michael Jackson song this week, so I dig her.

Scott keeps singing these adult contemporary songs. Dude! We all like you, now do something fun. You're making us want to nap. I can't believe Simon compared Danny to Michael McDonald, when that's more Scott's style! Maybe not the whole "white man with soul" thing, but in the only-old-people-listen-to-my-music way.

I think Oil Rig Michael has a big-time family appeal and probably has a large fan base. If he sticks to the Josh Gracin mold, then he'll stick around for awhile. There's no way he's going to win, but he can be in the Top 10 and not annoy me. Besides, I know at least one person who thinks Oil Rig brings the hotness, so there ya go.

Matt Giraud is a sleeper cell. I bet he sticks around a long time, sort of under the radar. I like him with his piano, but he needs to show a fun side too. I thought his rendition of "Viva La Vida" a few weeks back wasn't terrible, and I actually learned some of the lyrics that I didn't understand from Chris Martin. "Human Nature" was probably a safer choice for him, since the judges went nuts on him the week before.

My opinion about Kris Allen changes every single episode. I thought it was strange when he went from Michael Bubble to Michael Jackson during the Top 36 round. He made me feel like I was at a church talent show during that performance. This week, though, I kinda dug his guitar version of "Remember the Time." He's like the cute nerd in the high school chorus class. I don't want to hang out with that guy, but he's good in his little niche.

Megan Corkery was an interesting wild card choice. She's a really awkward person. She's really pretty, but it's like her head doesn't match her body. She's got a sweet little angel face, but the rest of her is anything but vanilla. I'm on the fence about her. I didn't think that "Rockin' Robin" was the best choice, but it wasn't as terrible as some of my friends thought. She has a lot of potential to grow on me.

I do not get the appeal of Adam. He is too drag queen to me. He needs to a) wear less makeup b) stop talking about/singing/performing like musical theater. He's a good singer, but I can't get behind him for those reasons. He should try a nice little ballad and tune down the theatrics. He's just so loud. It was not exactly shocking to discover that he had read Twilight and saw the movie. Meh. His version of "Black and White" was crazy overrated, in my humble opinion. It wasn't terrible, but the earth did not shake with joy over it.

On the other hand, I get the appeal of Alexis to a certain extent. I think she's cute and has come a long way since her audition. She hasn't sold me on her personality yet, and since I'm tone deaf, I base all of my opinions on that. "Dirty Diana" was definitely a step in the right direction. Get a little attitude, girl!

Oh Danny Gokey, my crush for the season. I'm not so sure about his Partridge-style family, but I dig his singing and his personality. While Paula got a little over excited, I think she's right. He'll be in the final. He's more than a singer, he puts on a great show, as he did with "PYT," and he's not cheesy about it. I think they created the veto just in case any fools try to vote him off too early!

I just hope the rest of the season is entertaining and not a snooze-fest like the past few weeks!

Here's the dwindling list (in order of my favorite to the bottom feeders):

Danny Gokey

Anoop Desai

Lil Rounds

Alexis Grace

Kris Allen

Oil Rig

Adam Lambert

Matt Giraud

Scott Macintyre

Megan Corkery

Allison Iraheta